The light in the bamboo grove suddenly dimmed.
I wanted to go back the way I had come, but after walking for nearly ten minutes, I still could not get out of the grove.
I stopped. I realized that I might be lost.
It was not as though I had never been to this little bamboo grove before. It was not large at all, just a small patch of woods in Jiaxiu Tower Leisure Park. Yet I had gotten lost in a place no bigger than the palm of my hand.
That should have been impossible.
Someone had to be up to something.
Once I figured that out, I calmed down.
I looked around. I believed the person behind it was the Black-Robed Man.
And he was also why Chu Ge and the others had been unable to follow me into that Dreamscape.
But why had he brought me into that Dreamscape? Why had he made me witness Xie Xiaotang's death with my own eyes? Was this some kind of provocation?
He knew I was handling this case now. He had put on this little show to make me back off in the face of difficulty. He had even sent me a message: if he could toy with Xie Xiaotang to death, he could do the same to me.
Even with three helpers by my side, they could not help me at all when it truly mattered.
"Come out! Get out here!" I shouted, fear rising in my heart, though I was even more on guard.
"Kid, stop meddling in things that don't concern you. This is a game you can't afford to play." A voice came from behind me.
I spun around, and sure enough, I saw the Black-Robed Man.
"Who the hell are you?" I demanded.
The Black-Robed Man's voice was icy. "This is the first and last warning. If you dare meddle again, you'll be the next one to die."
His words made the temperature around me seem to drop. I actually felt a chill.
"Is that so? Then come kill him right now if you've got the guts."
Duan Hongbin appeared. He stood to my left, looking lazy as he casually picked at his ear.
"I'd also like to see how you're going to kill him." The speaker was Chu Ge, who appeared on my right.
"And me. How could I miss something this lively? Though I really have to admire you. You did a fine job setting the mood. Even I was almost scared."
The moment the three of them appeared, the Black-Robed Man vanished into thin air.
"You'll be the next one to die!" Those were his parting words. I could hear a trace of anger in his voice.
Only after the Black-Robed Man disappeared did I finally let out a long breath.
I looked at Chu Ge. "Why are you here? Didn't you say before that he had some powerful means to keep you out and prevent you from appearing?"
Chu Ge smiled, while Eccentric Song said, "If we'd shown ourselves from the start, wouldn't you have missed the replay of that car accident? You also wouldn't have come face-to-face with this guy."
Duan Hongbin said flatly, "He really thinks he's something. He's nothing but trash."
I frowned. "You know where he comes from?"
Duan Hongbin nodded. "He's an Onmyoji, probably from the Island Nation."
I had heard of Onmyoji before. There seemed to be a rather popular game by that name too.
But I did not play games. I had no interest in that sort of thing.
Or rather, there were not many things in this world that interested me, because Little Ancestral Hall Entrance filled my heart. The only thing I cared about was where my parents were now and whether they were still alive.
I had joined Unit Nine for only one reason: to uncover the truth behind the Little Ancestral Hall Entrance incident.
But investigating Xie Xiaotang's death was my duty, an obligation I had to fulfill while enjoying the rights granted to me by Unit Nine.
I just had not expected Xie Xiaotang's case to be so complicated, or for it to involve an Onmyoji from the Island Nation.
"What? Scared?" Duan Hongbin lightly patted my shoulder. I shook my head.
I had indeed felt afraid just now, but I would not back down because of his threats and intimidation.
Because I knew full well that the Little Ancestral Hall Entrance case was a hundred, even a thousand times more complicated than this one. If I backed down over such a minor setback, I would never uncover the truth behind Little Ancestral Hall Entrance's disappearance or find my parents.
"Don't worry. I don't think much of a mere Onmyoji." Duan Hongbin was brimming with confidence.
Chu Ge added, "With us here, he can't do anything to you. Nor would he dare."
Eccentric Song smiled as well. "That's right. Anyone who underestimates us brothers will die an ugly death."
I nodded. "Thanks."
"Enough. We're brothers, so don't say that word again." After Chu Ge said that, all three of them disappeared.
This time, I easily walked out of the little bamboo grove.
After leaving Jiaxiu Tower Leisure Park, I found a noodle shop by the street and ordered an extra-large bowl of Changwang Noodles with an egg. I wolfed it down.
I had a huge appetite. I did not know whether it had something to do with the presence of those three.
That big bowl of noodles was my lunch.
After eating, I called Xie Yi.
I had to report the matter of the Onmyoji to him.
He was indeed surprised after hearing it. "Are you sure he's an Onmyoji from the Island Nation?"
"I'm sure. I trust Duan Hongbin." I truly trusted the three of them without reservation.
"I understand. Be careful, then. I'll arrange for people to protect you. Try not to confront him head-on. Those people from the Island Nation have no principles or bottom line."
"You don't need to send anyone to protect us. We can handle it ourselves."
My confidence came from my three companions.
Xie Yi seemed a little hesitant. "All right, then. In any case, don't act rashly."
At around 2:40 in the afternoon, I arrived at the Municipal Cultural Relics Bureau.
I went straight to the director's office.
The director's surname was Fang. He was a man in his fifties.
"Why are you asking about her?" When Director Fang learned that I wanted to know about Xie Xiaotang, he looked at me warily.
"I'm with the Municipal Police Bureau Criminal Investigation Unit. Here's my ID."
The ID I showed him was indeed from the Municipal Police Bureau. The man in the black suit whom Xie Yi had arranged for me earlier had given it to me. Although I also had Unit Nine credentials, the man in black had said this ID might be more useful when investigating cases.
Of course, I had never been to the Municipal Police Bureau. I did not even know anyone there.
But I believed that even if Director Fang checked up on the ID, there would not be any problem.
Director Fang took it and examined it, then handed it back and invited me to sit down.
"According to procedure, don't Municipal Police Bureau investigators usually work in pairs?" Director Fang even knew police investigation procedure. I said, "There were originally two of us, but my colleague had an urgent matter and left midway. Since I'd already come, I thought I'd first get a sense of the situation. Besides, it's not a major matter, so there's no need to strictly follow procedure."
Director Fang nodded slightly.
"So, what would you like to know?"
"Let's start with Xie Xiaotang herself. What impression did you have of her?"
Director Fang thought for a moment before slowly saying, "Xiao Tang came to our bureau after graduating from university. I was the one who hired her. It has been thirteen or fourteen years now, I suppose. She studied archaeology in university, so her major was a perfect fit. She also had a real gift for identifying cultural relics. In Old Yao's words, she was born to do this work. Oh, Old Yao was her graduate advisor back in university."
"The Municipal Cultural Relics Bureau shouldn't have that many relics needing appraisal, should it?"
"Not that many, indeed. But she was often invited to take part in archaeological work. When the ceremonial tomb of Emperor Jianwen was discovered in Tangbian County, she was responsible for its appraisal and verification. She was famous not only in Qian Province, but throughout the field nationwide. Honestly, with her ability, she could have made a great deal of money outside. Yet she never took private jobs, and she was always conscientious and responsible at work. She was a good comrade. Sigh, what a pity. I just don't understand how someone like her could suddenly be gone."
I could tell that Director Fang genuinely felt sorry for her.
"How did she get along with her colleagues?"
"Fine, I suppose. Although she wasn't very sociable, she still maintained normal interpersonal relations."
I pressed on. "What do you mean by not being sociable?"
"She rarely took part in group activities. Sometimes her colleagues invited her to eat or sing karaoke together, and she always politely declined. You know, after being coworkers for over a decade, people often visit one another's homes, exchange gifts during holidays, and so on. But she never went to anyone's home, nor did she ever invite anyone to hers."
"Never? Had she been like that ever since she started working, or did it only begin a few years ago?"
"She had always been like that." Director Fang did not seem to understand why I had asked.
But I had my own thoughts.
If it had only started in recent years, after her miscarriage, I could understand why she had not wanted colleagues coming to her home after raising a little ghost there. But if she had always been that way, then it was harder to explain.